Employee Engagement

2018 was a year of transformation for Sappi North America (SNA). We rebuilt a paper machine, developed an entirely new packaging line, helped launch exciting new brand positioning for our dissolving pulp product, and established a creative, passionate sustainability team to set the course for our future.

At Sappi North America (SNA), we keep sustainability at the forefront of our operations. Together with the 2020Vision— Sappi’s global growth strategy—we use our sustainability goals program to set targets, initiate improvement actions, and monitor our commitment to progress. Our goals are reflective of the desires of our employees, customers, and investors.

Computerworld has ranked VMware among the Best Places to Work in IT 2019. VMware came in at number 12 out of the 49 large organizations (5,000+ U.S. employees) to make the list, which recognizes excellence in career developments, benefits, retention, training and diversity.

While most leaders agree that investing in corporate philanthropy and employee giving programs are great for a corporate brand, these initiatives have become more important than ever, especially for hiring and retention.

A record 3,937 General Mills employees participated in our 10th annual Global Volunteer Week, including employees from 46 locations (including 17 countries). In total, our employees dedicated more than 6,637 volunteer hours, which included positively impacting the environment, supporting hunger relief efforts, and helping our furry friends at animal rescue organizations.

How has the pro bono movement made an impact across sectors and around the globe? And how can we keep pushing the field forward? Pro bono experts from companies, nonprofits, and intermediary organizations all came together at the Global Pro Bono Summit—hosted by Taproot Foundation—to answer these questions and more.

I would like to congratulate the Sappi North America (SNA) team on another successful year, truly embodying this year’s theme of renewal. The business underwent a significant change with the conversion of Paper Machine 1 (PM1) at the Somerset Mill to be able to produce packaging and speciality paper grades. We also commenced a project to increase dissolving pulp capacity at Cloquet. These exciting changes are part of Sappi’s global strategy to boost capacity in higher growth and higher margin product segments. Despite the inevitable disruption which accompanies such significant capital projects, the business was able to offset cost pressure in the graphic paper business, nearly doubled packaging business volumes and improved overall profitability after the conversion of Somerset PM1. Impor